CallBurner records what you say and hear through Skype. In order to get the best sounding recordings, you need to make sure that your underlying Skype call sounds as good as it can be.

To ensure that you record your Skype calls at a consistent volume on both sides of the call (your side, and the other side), follow these steps:

1. Wear a headset instead of using your PC speakers. Wearing a headset (even a cheap one) can make a huge difference. If you need a headset, see our range.

2. Make a few tests calls to one of your Skype contacts. Listen to how the audio sounds during the call and then play back the recorded CallBurner file and listen to the audio levels in the recording. Tip: If you can’t find anyone to do a test call with, try calling “echo123″ – Skype’s Call Testing Service. If the audio is still not sounding consistent on both sides, see the Skype Sound Setup Guide, or contact us for help.

3. Once you have the Skype settings just right for recording, adjust your Windows volume controls for listening comfort (these do not affect the level at which CallBurner records).

4. Once you have Skype setup so you get great sounding calls, you can tweak CallBurner to record your calls at higher or lower quality bit-rates & file formats. We recommend you follow steps 1-3 before trying this step as the best way to get great sounding calls is to make sure the underlying Skype call is as good as it can be. Out of the box, CallBurner is configured to record your Skype calls at a bit-rate & file format which gives lots of clarity without taking up too much disk space.

CallBurner can be configured to store the recorded calls you make on a central shared network file server. If you are using CallBurner in a business with multiple computers, you can configure CallBurner on each computer to centrally store the recorded calls. For more information on what a shared network file server, or a “network drive”, please see http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308582.

To configure CallBurner to store the recorded calls you make on a central shared network file server, follow these steps:

Click on the Options menu in CallBurner and then click Configure.

Click the Recording tab and then click on the Browse button on the right side of the Folder to store recordings in text box.

Select a Network Drive and path that you would like to store the CallBurner recorded calls on to from the Drives drop-down menu.

After the 30 day free trial has expired you can continue to use CallBurner to record all Skype-to-Skype calls with other CallBurner users for free. (NOTE: You must both be running CallBurner 1.0.0.35 or later).

To continue to record calls to and from normal phones, or Skype-to-Skype calls with non-CallBurner users, you need to purchase a CallBurner license. (For details click here).

How does this work?

If your 30 day trial has expired and you have not purchased a license, CallBurner still allows you to record Skype-to-Skype calls if:

The other party is running CallBurner (1.0.0.35 or later, free or full license) on the PC being used to conduct the call *and*

You are running CallBurner 1.0.0.35 or later.

If the call is a conference call, only one other participant needs to have CallBurner running on their PC.

Operation is exactly the same as during the trial, and exactly the same as Full CallBurner. If you have set all calls to be recorded, CallBurner will automatically record calls where it detects CallBurner running at the other end. If you have not set all calls to be recorded, CallBurner will allow you to click the “Record” button if it detects CallBurner running at the other end. If you attempt to record a call to a non-CallBurner user, you will receive a warning message and recording will not take place.

2. If you only need to record PC-to-PC calls, skip this step. If you want to record calls made from your PC to standard phone lines you will need to purchase Skype Credit. You can purchase Skype Credit here if you do not already have some. If you want to record phone calls made from standard phone lines, you will need a SkypeIn number. You can purchase a SkypeIn number here if you do not already have one.

3. If you don’t already have CallBurner, download and install it from here.

4. After installing, you will see the CallBurner application:

5. Go to Skype and start a phone call or PC-to-PC call. (NOTE: Recording also works for incoming calls, conference calls and SkypeCasts).

6. Recording will start automatically:

7. Hang up the call.

8. Click the “Play” button to hear the recording.

9. Previous recordings can be viewed and played back from the “Previous Calls” tab:

2. Download CallBurner and install it, or if you have a copy of the CallBurner setup file, open the folder containing it and double-click it.

3. Follow the instructions in the wizard.

4. The CallBurner licensing and startup wizards will be displayed. Follow the prompts to configure CallBurner.

5. NOTE: When CallBurner connects to Skype for the first time, the following dialog will appear:

This is a standard security dialog that Skype shows for all third party applications that use Skype. It is designed to protect you from unauthorised software accessing your Skype application. You must click one of the “Allow…” options in order for CallBurner to operate. If you accidentally click OK before setting the option correctly, you can follow these instructions to allow CallBurner to access Skype.

6. On completion of the wizard, the CallBurner window will be displayed.

If you have been sent to this page by CallBurner, there has been a problem giving CallBurner permission to connect to Skype. Skype usually asks you to allow access, but sometimes not in an obvious way, and sometimes not at all due to problems in Skype.

Skype 4.0 and later
Skype shows an “Allow access” button near the top right hand side of the main Skype window. Click it to allow CallBurner to connect to Skype. (NOTE: If the right-hand panel is hidden in your Skype, Skype will instead pop up a separate window for you to allow access).

If you don’t see the button, go to Tools > Options > Advanced and click “Manage other programs access to Skype” near the bottom of the page. If CallBurner appears in the list, click it and click the “Change” button to alter permissions.

If CallBurner is not in the list, reboot your PC and try again.

If you still don’t see it, it is possible that security software is getting in the way. For example, Auslogics has an option to disable the Skype public API. Turning this option off (or similar options in other products) should resolve the issue.

Skype 3.8
Skype shows an “Events” button near the top of the main Skype window. Click this button to see a list of events. There should be an event called “callburner.exe” – click it to see the window that allows you grant CallBurner access to Skype.

If you don’t see the event, reboot your PC and try again.

If you still don’t see it, it is possible that security software is getting in the way. For example, Auslogics has an option to disable the Skype public API. Turning this option off should resolve the issue.

Skype 3.6 or earlier
Skype should normally pop up a window asking you to give permission. Sometimes this doesn’t happen due to a problem in Skype.

Usually you can work around it by following these steps:

1. Reboot your PC and start Skype then CallBurner. Soon after starting CallBurner you may see a window that looks like this:

2. If the above window appears, click the “Allow…” option then click OK. CallBurner should now start normally. If the above window does not appear, CallBurner may still start normally. In either case, if it does not, follow the steps below.

Steps to follow if CallBurner still does not start properly

1. Reboot your PC and start Skype. (Don’t start CallBurner just yet. If it starts automatically, right-click the CallBurner icon in the system tray and choose “Quit” before proceeding).